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The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Movie of the Year 2012 So Far. What a trilogy!
The Dark Knight Rises was a fantastic movie and wrapped up a great trilogy! For fans wondering how it stacks up to the others, I'd say it's only a smidgen below The Dark Knight, and better than Batman Begins. The new cast members were all spectacular, from Marion Cotillard to Tom Hardy to Joseph Gordon-Levitt to Anne Hathaway. It seemed everyone fit into the universe quite well. Visual effects and cinematography are Oscar quality, and I'd personally like to see Gordon-Levitt or Hardy have a shot at Supporting Actor. Nolan deserves a directing and writing nod. The entire movie is long but you do not notice because the story is engaging and it's a non-stop thrill ride. A must see! Only problem is there are times you cannot understand what the character is saying (Hardy and Gordon-Levitt come to mind) but it only happens a little bit and it is only a nitpick. The summer blockbuster that puts The Avengers to shame!
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
An Interesting Movie, But Probably Not What You Expect
Before I get into the review, I must say I am impressed by Fox's idea of a new version of this movie, and I also think highly of the way the apes look and their expressions in this movie. A great job done by Andy Serkis to fully capture Caesar's emotions and truly portray exactly what he goes through. He is almost guaranteed to be snubbed for an Oscar, but he certainly deserves a nomination and he is the main character in this movie. This is his best motion capture acting performance since Gollum in the Lord of the Rings, and he is the true highlight of the technology that went into making the apes look realistic.
James Franco doesn't work in this movie. It is almost like he just showed up for work and read his lines. He tries to be a scientist but also tries to be a cool, normal Aron Rolston type guy that just doesn't fit together. But it's not his fault. The way his character is written is not focused enough to make Franco's scientist job seem real. It isn't the greatest balance of two dimensions.
Another awesome thing in the movie creates a problem. The apes have great emotions and the screenwriters did a great job and making them become the protagonists and making them more likable than the humans. However, while they are focused on the apes, James Franco and Freida Pinto almost do nothing, and their characters almost feel unneeded in order to continue the plot. Characters such as Tom Felton's and Brian Cox's are nasty enough to like the apes, but characters like James Franco and Freida Pinto aren't enough to give the humans any credibility, and it would have been nice to see those two have bigger, more hero-inspiring roles.
My last few notes, it's a solid reboot with action that is good enough to see in a theatre, and if you are a big Planet of the Apes fan from the past, you will love the references throughout the movie. You might smirk once from one of the more obvious references but overall, take them as a bonus treat to the adventure! The story feels hollow at times, but it's good enough to share an experience with the viewers.
Saw III (2006)
Out with the mind games, in with the gore...
I remember seeing the first movie, walking out and thinking, "wow, what a great horror movie. It had both story and good thrills!" The second one, I thought, still not the worst story, but the gore contributed positively to the movie and still made another great horror film. Saw 3....made for the money. I thought the traps in the film weren't as deep and didn't have as much meaning as the first two films. All this movie really did was kill person after person and move on, which is your typical slasher flick that no one gets surprised from. The original story portrayed in the first movie is lost and misplayed and loses out to torturing and watching people suffer. Darren Lynn Bousman, who directed Saw 2 and did it very well, tried to keep the same style with Saw 3, but it ran out of magic here. Bousman wants to keep a dark atmosphere with suspenseful music in the background while the gore piles on, but there is no story to back him up, so the formula fails. In fact, anything that tries to show substance ends up failing, either due to the screenplay or due to Bousman's formula. Jigsaw as a character is still written well, with James Wan and Leigh Whannell still getting credit for sticking with the franchise, but it's the rest that doesn't merit my attention. Saw 3 doesn't capitalize on what Saw 2 did well, gore and story, but Jigsaw continues to be a thrilling character who whenever he says something, it catches the audiences' eye. The traps are gory, but they are unbelievable and one must wonder how these elaborate schemes actually continue to thrill the viewer. Everything seems to just be available for Jigsaw/Amanda to make a ultra scene, like the Judge pig trap, where somehow a whole bunch of pig liquid is just...available and ready. It doesn't make sense. Also, although Jigsaw is still written great as a character, the lines of wisdom and "life is precious" get repetitive and annoying. Overall, although there are still scenes that will make you cringe, such as a brain surgery scene, heads exploding, or rib cages being pulled open, this movie is just a shadow of what once was a thoughtful franchise, and the premise of a million mediocre movies to come.